Chicken Taco Chili with Cornmeal Dumplings is the kind of hearty, spicy soup dinner you'll crave all fall and winter, with fluffy dumplings simmered right into a bold Southwest Chicken Chili. Made stove top in a Dutch oven with shredded chicken, this Red Chicken Chili with Cornmeal Dumplings feels cozy without being heavy. You'll get clear, easy steps that help this become one of your best winter soups on busy nights. Pin this now so it's ready whenever you need a no-stress, big-flavor meal.
Why is this the best Chicken Taco Chili with Cornmeal Dumplings recipe
This easy chicken taco chili recipe is absolutely delicious! The combination of bold southwestern flavor in slow-simmering chili, topped with soft, tender homemade cornmeal biscuits, then topped with fresh cheddar cheese: it's a delicious dinner!
This recipe makes the best chicken chili anytime! It's super easy to make and quick enough for busy weeknights because it's all cooked in a Dutch oven on the stove. Add a fresh green salad, and it's a whole family dinner that everyone will love at the end of a long day!
This is an easy recipe for chicken chili. Stir together the chicken taco chili ingredients in the Dutch oven. Using a store-bought rotisserie chicken would make this even easier! Create the cornmeal dumplings with just 3 ingredients and drop them into the chili. Place the lid on your Dutch oven and simmer for 30 minutes. That's it!
The ingredients for the dish are common and easy to find. You likely already have most of the simple ingredients for this easy chicken taco chili recipe in your pantry. If you need an ingredient or two, you can easily find them in most local grocery stores or on Amazon!
This chicken taco chili with cornmeal dumplings recipe tastes amazing! This chicken chili is delicious on its own and divine with fresh cilantro and a dollop of sour cream!
What you'll need to make Chicken Chili with Cornmeal Dumplings
Equipment
- Dutch oven - The chili and cornmeal dumplings need a slow, gentle simmer that this heavy-bottom pan allows.
- Garlic press - This is the best way to mince your fresh garlic, but if you don't have one, you can use the flat side of a chef's knife to smash the garlic clove. Remove the papery skin and use the sharp side of the knife to mince the garlic.
- Scoop set - This will allow you evenly sized cornmeal dumplings.
- Chicken shredder - I love this handy gadget. You put chicken breasts or thighs into the bottom, slide the top on, and twist a few times. The chicken is shredded in under a minute. (Warm chicken shreds easier than cold or room temperature chicken.)
Ingredients
See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.
- Diced sweet onion - Sautéed onion gives the chili a delicious flavor.
- Shredded chicken - This needs to be pre-cooked.
- tomato sauce - This should be plain, unflavored tomato sauce.
- spicy chili beans in sauce - These should be undrained.
- corn kernels - I use frozen corn that has been thawed.
- Fresh garlic - There is no substitute for the flavor of fresh garlic. I strongly recommend buying a bulb (which will contain about ten individual cloves).
- chili powder - This gives the chili its characteristic flavor.
- Bisquick mix - We will use Bisquick mix in place of flour, baking powder, salt, etc. You can also use a gluten-free cup-for-cup baking mix in this recipe.
- cornmeal - This is what makes the dumplings taste like cornbread.
- Whole milk - You can use whatever dairy or plant milk you want.
- shredded cheddar cheese - I always top my chili with shredded cheddar, but you could use pepper jack or Monterey jack if you wanted.
How to make Southwest Chicken Chili with Cornmeal Dumplings
- In a 4 or 6-quart Dutch Oven, sauté the onion in butter or bacon grease until soft and translucent.
- Mix chicken and tomato sauce into onions. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover; simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans, corn, and garlic. Heat to boiling, then reduce heat to medium-low.
- In a medium bowl, mix Bisquick mix, cornmeal, and milk until a soft dough forms. Use your medium scoop to drop 6-8 dumplings onto the hot chili. You can do more dumplings if you have space. (Do not drop directly into liquid, or you will splash boiling hot chili all over yourself! Drop the dumplings onto some chicken and then scoot them around in the liquid.)
- Cook uncovered over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Cover and cook 20 minutes longer or until the dumplings are cooked through.
- Sprinkle with cheese. Cover; cook about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
- Serve with a dollop of sour cream.
Substitutions & variations
If you like more spice, you could add some cayenne pepper, green chiles, cumin, and/or more chili powder. You could also add some Tabasco or Frank's RedHot to individual portions just before serving. We like ours mild and leave it as is.
Add more vegetables, like chopped green or red bell pepper, shredded carrots, or chopped celery. Cook them with the onions in the first step.
I don't recommend replacing the chili beans because you will lose all the good flavor from the sauce. If you want to add additional beans, you can add drained and rinsed white beans, black beans, kidney beans, or even hominy.
Storing leftovers
Transfer one-pot chicken chili to an airtight container and separate the dumplings. Store chili and dumplings separately up to 5 days in the refrigerator. (If you store the dumplings with the chili, they will get soggy and fall apart.)
Chili freezes well, but cornmeal dumplings become softer and denser after freezing. Freeze them separately, in airtight containers or plastic freezer bags. You can freeze up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Reheat the dumplings in the microwave. Reheat the chili on the stovetop, covered, over medium-low heat. Add a splash of chicken broth if it's too thick.
Add cheese on top when ready to serve.
Check out more delicious chili recipes.
- Green Chili Cheeseburger Quesadillas
- Easy Black Bean and Beef Chili
- World's Best Chili with Bacon
- Chili Baked Potatoes in the Air Fryer
- Green Chili Chicken Soup (Stovetop or Crockpot)
- Cheesy Baked Green Chili Egg Casserole with Cottage Cheese
Recipe
Chicken Taco Chili with Cornmeal Dumplings
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ large sweet onion diced
- 2 cups chicken cooked, shredded
- 15 ounces tomato sauce
- 30 ounces spicy chili beans in sauce undrained
- 1 cup corn kernels
- 2 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1½ cups Bisquick mix
- ½ cup cornmeal
- ⅔ cup milk
- 4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- In a 4 or 6-quart Dutch Oven, saute onion in butter or bacon grease until soft and translucent.
- Mix chicken and tomato sauce into onions. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover; simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans, corn, and garlic. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium-low.
- In a medium bowl, mix Bisquick mix, cornmeal, and milk until a soft dough forms. Use your medium scoop to drop 6-8 dumplings onto the hot chili. (Do not drop directly into liquid, or you will splash boiling hot chili all over yourself! Drop the dumplings onto some chicken and then scoot them around in the liquid.)
- Cook uncovered over medium-low heat 10 minutes. Cover; cook 20 minutes longer or until dumplings are cooked through.
- Sprinkle with cheese. Cover; cook about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
- Serve with a dollop of sour cream.
Amanda says
I have made a recipe almost identical to this from out of the Bisquick cook book for us here and it was great. I had ground beef instead of chicken, but I will have to try the chicken kind one day. Our cheese went into the dumplings and on top also.
Ginger says
All I can say is, yum!
darnold23 says
Mister Linky is up for this week's Crock Pot Wednesday. I figured with the busy week and weekend, that we should get an early start. I hope you will come on over and join me. There's a giveaway going on.
shopannies says
new recipe to me looks delicious we often have chilli with cornbread and I bet this is great
Mrs. Jen B says
Oh wow, I never made dumplings with cornmeal AND Bisquick before - great idea! And I bet they go fantastically with the chili!